


The Dragonborn In Smash

by MediaMan18



Series: Characters In Smash [3]
Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Super Smash Brothers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-15
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-24 04:19:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30066543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MediaMan18/pseuds/MediaMan18
Summary: What if the legendary warrior of Tamriel was in Smash?
Series: Characters In Smash [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2096832
Kudos: 1





	The Dragonborn In Smash

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own, nor claim to own, the rights to “The Elder Scrolls” or “Super Smash Brothers”. They are the legal properties of Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Softworks and Nintendo, respectively. Thus, infringement of copyright is not intended.

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They are hero that hails from the frosted north of Tamriel, who rose to the occasion and fought against fate itself to save the world; the Dragonborn, from “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim”! There is a LOT to go over with this character, so let me get their backstory out of the way.

Starting out as Bethesda’s favourite character trope, the prisoner with a largely unknown history, the character you play as is initially set to be executed by the Imperial Legion under the impression that they had joined the Stormcloak rebellion, led by the disgraced Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak. This execution was interrupted, however, by the arrival of something not seen in centuries; a Dragon, one known as the World-Eater Alduin! Narrowly escaping with their life, the player character then takes it upon themselves to warn people of the Dragons returning… once they get armoured up and enhance their skills, of course.

Soon enough, the player character learns that they have the power to absorb the very Souls of Dragons, channelling it into the ability to project their voice into a series of powerful abilities known as Shouts. With the guidance of the Greybeards, a group of wise old men who have studied the ways of the Voice, the player character learns of their destiny to vanquish Alduin once and for all, freeing the world from its destruction and coming to be known by one name; the Dragonborn! And now, they’ll be given the chance to prove themselves as a mighty warrior as they arrive in the battlefield of Smash Brothers.

Getting right into the mechanics; the Dragonborn will be a fairly sluggish heavyweight fighter; their attacks come out a bit slow, but they will still pack a major punch to put even the likes of Donkey Kong or King Dedede in their place. They’ll also have two jumps, and they would be able to crawl.

And I just want to rip this band-aid off first before I continue on with his main attacks:

** Gimmick: **

When playing any of the mainstream “Elder Scrolls” games, something that they player has to be conscious of is their Health, Stamina, and Magicka. These three elements are the core fundamentals into helping to build up your player character so that they may survive in the harsh lands of Tamriel. And when coming to Smash, it will be no different for the Dragonborn.

In Smash, the Dragonborn will have two different bars next to their damage percentage meter. First is the green Stamina bar; traditionally, Stamina is what is used by the player characters to either increase how much they can carry on their person, how far they can sprint, or how many charged attacks that they can use before the bar is emptied. And when used in Smash, aside from excising the “carry-weight” limit, it’ll be no different. Several attacks, which I will list as I write them out, will drain the Stamina bar as they’re used, and sprinting will also drain the bar as the Dragonborn continues to do so. Overall, they’ll have a total of fifty Stamina points and the bar itself will slowly refill on its own so long as the Dragonborn avoids using them too often.

The second bar at their disposal is the blue Magicka meter; as the name implies, this determines how much magic the player character has at their disposal in order to cast stronger spells. Whenever the Dragonborn uses a spell in Smash, the Magicka bar will naturally drain until it is emptied. Just like the Stamina bar, it has a total of fifty Magicka points and refills on its own the longer the Dragonborn doesn’t use spells. Also like the Stamina bar, I will note specific moments whenever the Dragonborn uses an attack that drains this bar.

Now that I got this out of the way, let’s finally get into how the Dragonborn will handle themselves on the battlefield.

** Standard/Aerial/Smash Attacks: **

As much as several Smash fans may not like it, I am giving the Dragonborn a lot of attacks that mainly revolve around the use of melee weapons as well as giving them a shield with which to use in several of their attacks. So in essence, they are kind of a sword-fighter character, even if not ALL of their attacks will have them wielding the melee weapon in question. As to which melee weapon they use, I’ll address this later.

But starting off with their Jab; it can be a 3-hit attack that starts with two horizontal swings from their melee weapon. The first swing is from right to left, then the second swing is from left to right. This references how melee weapons are traditionally swung in “The Elder Scrolls”. Their third hit, as well as the first attack to use Stamina points, will be a bash from their trusty shield. This is really useful to get foes away from you, as the shield-bash has a small amount of launch power, but there is some end lag after using the move and the bash itself costs five Stamina points apiece, so it’s wise not to spam this one. The Dash Attack, which drains ten Stamina points every time it is used, will be the Power Attack; the Dragonborn halts all momentum for a powerful swing from their melee weapon. Although this is a strong attack, there is some start lag on top on how much Stamina it costs. And if the Dragonborn doesn’t have enough Stamina points, they’ll just swing the weapon normally, which will also be applied to their Jab if they don’t have enough Stamina.

For the side-Tilt, they’ll simply swing their melee weapon at a diagonal angle from high to low. It’s a simple move, but it is more spammable than the Jab and doesn’t cost any Stamina. As for the up-Tilt, this will be the first attack that drains the Magicka bar, as the Dragonborn conjures one of three elemental projectiles to launch at an upwards angle. Which element they use is randomised, but the attack itself has some incredible range, with the only downside being that it costs five Magicka points each time it is used. As for what the elements are and their effects; the first is a Firebolt. When this hits foes, they suffer from some lingering flame damage that lasts for three seconds before wearing off. Next, there is the Ice Spike, which can lower the movement speed of whoever that it hits. And the final spell will be the Lightning Bolt; while dealing less physical damage than the other projectile attacks, the Lightning Bolt has a random chance to stun foes when it connects with them.

For their down-Tilt, instead of simply tapping the attack command, you will want to start mashing it, as the Dragonborn will then start to cast a stream of elemental magic to anyone unfortunate enough to be directly in front of them. Each time the button is hit, it will only drain one Magicka point at a time, but there is some start lag as the Dragonborn preps themselves to cast the spell. Just like the up-Tilt, there are three spells that come out at random. First, there is the spell simply known as Flame, with the Dragonborn letting out a strong stream of fire. The effects of this spell carry over from the up-Tilt. Next, there is the spell Frostbite; the Dragonborn casts a small blast of freezing ice that could actually trap foes in a block of ice if the player is lucky enough. And for the final spell, the Dragonborn uses one of the first spells they learn when escaping Helgen in the first Dragon attack; Sparks! As the name implies, they go all Darth Sideous on the foes and hits them with a powerful stream of lighting that also deals a lot of shield damage.

And now for the Smash attacks, this will have the Dragonborn bring out the figurative big guns as they utilise the power of their Two-Handed weapons! Unlike what I have planned for their melee weapons, there will be a set Two-Handed weapon for each of the Smash attacks. But regardless of which one is used, there is a major cost; draining fifteen Stamina points every time a Smash attack is initiated. Now to actually get into those attacks; the side-Smash has the Dragonborn bring out their mighty Battleaxe! They’ll swing the cleaver in front of them from right to left, not only dealing a hefty amount of damage but also launching foes pretty far even at lower damage percentages. For their up-Smash, they’ll bust out their Greatsword and swing it overhead from front to back. Very basic attack, but there is a sweet spot where foes get launch even further if they’re caught at the start of the move. And for the down-Smash, the Dragonborn will bring out their trusty Warhammer to slam on the ground directly in front of them. Just like the side-Smash, it deals a great deal of damage while launching foes really far away. One thing to consider with all of these attacks is, due to their impressive size as weapons, they’ll have great vertical and horizontal range to make up for the insane amount of start lag that these attacks have.

For the Dragonborn’s neutral-Aerial, they’ll simply swing their melee weapon in front of them from right to left. A very basic attack that wouldn’t cost any Stamina. Their forward-Aerial, however, will cost about five Stamina points, as they use a shield-bash to propel them forwards by a small margin. For the back-Aerial, the Dragonborn spins while in the air and swings their melee weapon behind them, which a) costs five Stamina points and b) references certain Power Attacks with the melee weapons in “Skyrim”. The up-Aerial will be an overhead swing with their weapon from front to back. And finally, the down-Aerial has the Dragonborn do a basic downwards kick that has a chance to spike foes at the right angles.

By now, you should remember that I haven’t specified which melee weapon the Dragonborn will be using in a majority of their attacks. But my reason for that is because it will actually randomly change between a small selection of weapons that the Dragonborn can collect in "Skyrim". The first, and most common, weapon will be a sword. It has the longest range of the basic melee weapons and has the best chance at spiking foes out of any of the weapons. The next weapon will be the pickaxe, which deals a smaller amount of damage but compensates by having better launch power than the sword. Next up will be the mace, which deals more damage than the pickaxe but has the weakest chance to launch foes. After that is a war axe, which comes out faster than most of the weapons but only does average damage. And the final weapon that will appear will be a dagger. This weapon deals the least amount of damage and has the shortest range, but it compensates by coming out faster and eliminating the end lag in most of the attacks where it is used. All of them have an equal chance to appear, much like how it’s equally easy to find these weapons in “Skyrim”.

** Grabs/Throws: **

The Dragonborn will use their Warhammer to grab their foe, swinging the handle around their neck and holding them in place to Pummel them with a headbutt. This makes reference to one of the kill animations that the Dragonborn has when killing an opponent with the Warhammer. As for the throws themselves, they are pretty basic; a forward push for the forward-Throw, a toss behind for the back-Throw, and a toss upwards for the up-Throw. As for the down-Throw, the Dragonborn will suddenly grapple the caught foe in a bear hug before just dropping them on the ground.

** Specials: **

With the Dragonborn’s Specials, they’ll all revolve around their signature power; the ability to project their voice into a Thu’um/Shout! For context, Shouting is what allows the Dragonborn to use the same power as that of the Dragons; speaking their language in order to use Words of Power that results in different kinds of attacks. However, there is a downside to this power that will be carried over to Smash; recharge time. See, a Shout is typically divided into three different words; each new word added to the Shout makes it even more powerful. But the more Words that are used in the Shout, the longer it will take to recharge overall. In the context of how this will work in Smash Brothers, when the full Shout is used, each Shout will have their own set recharge time. I will go into specifics as to how long each recharge time is when I address the Shouts.

But as for those Shouts, the Dragonborn’s neutral-Special will have them use their signature attack; the Unrelenting Force Shout! This has the Dragonborn use a Shout that can either stagger foes on the spot using the first and second Words or straight up launching them into the blast zone with the full Shout. To specify; using the first Word of the Shout, “Fus”, will just leave any foe hit by the Shout staggered for a couple of seconds, making it easier for the Dragonborn to attack them. You will simply need to tap the Special button for the attack to work and you will need to wait for three seconds to recharge. Holding the button for one second will have the Dragonborn combine the Words “Fus” and “Ro” together for a stronger staggering Shout, which will also push foes back a short distance and deals a small amount of damage. It will take at least six seconds for the Shout to recharge. And for holding the button down for two seconds will then have the Dragonborn use the full Shout; “Fus Ro Dah”! This is one of their deadliest attacks, as Unrelenting Force will instantly launch foes very close to the Blast Zone at higher damage percentages. However, using the full Shout will take about twelve seconds to fully recharge and there is some end lag after the move is used.

For the Dragonborn’s side-Special, this will be their only recovery Special as they use the Whirlwind Sprint Shout! This is one of the Shouts that your character learns from the Greybeards after being summoned to their home on High Hrothgar. When used, it will send the Dragonborn across the stage in an instant at a set distance, depending on how many Words in the Shout are used. Just tapping the button will use “Wuld”, which will send them about a quarter-way across the stage and will take only one second to recharge. Holding the button down for one second has them use “Wuld Nah”, which will send the Dragonborn player halfway across the stage and takes three seconds to recharge. Holding the button down for two seconds has them use the full Shout, “Wuld Nah Kest”, which sends them across the entire stage in a single bound and takes about five seconds to recharge. Be careful when using the full Shout, however, as there is some build up when using it, and could send the Dragonborn into freefall if not used correctly. Also, just like in “Skyrim”, using this Shout won’t prevent the player from falling off of the stage, so make sure that you only use the full Shout when either off of the stage or on the other side.

As I made the Dragonborn’s side-Special the only one that gives them a recovery option, I’ve decided that their up-Special would have them use one of the most dangerous attacks at their disposal; Storm Call! As the name of this Shout implies, the Dragonborn can summon a powerful storm that hovers above the entire stage while bombarding it with lightning strikes. Anyone hit by these strikes will not only take major damage and knockback, but there is also a small change that they will instantly be stunned upon being hit. This applies to the players, Assist Trophies and any summoned Pokémon. The general length of the storm itself will depend on which Word that the Dragonborn uses, but the recharge length will always be double the storms longevity. Using the first Word in this Shout, “Strun”, will have the storm last for about ten seconds before dissipating and will take twenty seconds to fully recharge. Using the Words, “Strun Bah”, will have the storm last for twenty seconds and takes forty seconds to recharge. And finally, using the full Shout “Strun Bah Qo” summons a powerful storm that lasts for thirty seconds, but will take a full minute to recharge. Overall, this is a powerful attack that no-one facing the Dragonborn wishes to see.

With that said however, there is one major drawback to consider with the up-Special and it’s not just the time it takes for the Shouts to recharge. Just like as the Shout is used in “Skyrim”, the lightning strikes can’t distinguish between friend or foe. Thus, if this attack is used in team battles, it will attack both your allies and your opponents. This will also carry over to any allies who summons a Pokémon or Assist Trophies. Therefore, I would advise great caution when using this Shout if you have an important ally on the battlefield.

But closing this section off with the Dragonborn’s down-Special, this will have them use the Shout known as the Call Of Valour… kind of. In “Skyrim", this Shout was granted to the Dragonborn after they had finally defeated Alduin in the games main quest. Whenever it is used, they can summon one of the original Dragonborns depending on which Word was used. And while I will incorporate the summoning feature of the Shout for this attack, I will be altering it to summon one of three followers that the Dragonborn can encounter during the game on the various quests you partake in. The Shout itself would recharge after twenty seconds and each follower is only out for about ten seconds at a time.

The first follower to be summoned with the Word “Hun” will be Lydia, the Housecarl that is granted to you after being named the Thane of Whiterun. Lydia will simply go back and forth between different foes and strike them once with her sword, but the main advantage is that she is near impervious to any attacks, just like how she seemingly can’t be killed if you have her following you in “Skyrim”. The next follower to be summoned with the Words “Hun Kaal” will be Farkas, a member of the Companions who has the ability to transform into a werewolf. Farkas deals the most damage and can also knock foes on the floor with a grappling attack, but the main downside is that he is the slowest and his attacks come out with some end lag. And the final follower to be summoned with the full Shout “Hun Kaal Zoor” will be Serana, the vampire daughter of Harkon from the “Dawnguard” DLC. While she doesn’t attack foes directly, her defining feature is the spell called “Vampiric Drain”; this is a spell that allows Serana to drain the health of any given foe. And for Smash, she’ll drain 25% of damage from the foe directly in front of her and give it to the Dragonborn to help them heal. And as an added bonus, using Serana will completely refill the Dragonborn’s Stamina and Magicka bars.

I personally felt that having the Call Of Valour Shout summon the Dragonborn’s followers works better thematically than just simply summoning one of three other Dragonborns, especially as we have the option to spend as much time with those followers as we want in “Skyrim” while we only fight with the other Dragonborns at the end of the games main quest.

** Final Smash: **

For the Dragonborn’s Final Smash, they’ll let out a mighty battle cry and anyone caught in earshot (say, two or three feet away from the Dragonborn) will be pulled into a cinematic Final Smash. The cinematic starts with the appearance of one the Dragonborn’s most valuable allies (provided you don’t kill him); Paarthurnax, the Dragon who betrayed Alduin and sided with mankind. Paarthurnax will land next to the Dragonborn, and they both use the Fire Breath Shout “Yol Toor Shul” to set the caught foes ablaze! The cinematic then ends with all caught foes being launched away, with any foe that ends up with over 120% of damage being instantly K.O’d.

** Other Stuff (Taunts, etc): **

The Dragonborn’s default appearance will be a male Nord in their Iron Armour, with the alternate costume being a female Nord in the same type of Armour. And the rest of their colours will make references to other types of Armour that they can find in the game. The male Nords first alternate colour will be brown, in reference to the Leather Armour. The female Nords first alt will be beige, based on the Chitin Armour. Next for the male will be turquoise, based on the Glass Armour. Next for the female will be gold, based on the Elven Armour. The final colour for the male will be white, based on the Steel Plate Armour. And the final alt for the female will be black, based on the Ebony Armour.

The Stage Intro will have the Dragonborn ride in on Paarthurnax before dropping off as the Dragon flies away. Their first Taunt will have them bang their melee weapon on their shield twice, as if goading the next foe to attack them. The second Taunt will have them conjure a small Healing spell in their hand before it disappears. And don’t worry, this won’t actually heal the Dragonborn; it’s purely for aesthetics. And their final Taunt can have them let out a mighty battle cry, which is what Nords can do as their main “Greater Power” in the game.

Wrapping things up with the Victory Animations; the first simply has the Dragonborn kneel in front of a Standing Stone (doesn’t matter which one) as it glows and sends a beam into the sky, as if the Dragonborn had just finished praying to it. The next will show the Dragonborn finish absorbing a Dragon’s soul, before turning around to face the camera with an intense glare, referencing the cover art of the “Dawnguard” DLC. And the final animation can have the Dragonborn holding a titular Elder Scroll above themselves. The camera then pans out to show the Greybeards surrounding the Dragonborn as they call out “Dovahkiin”, acknowledging the Dragonborn’s power and the legacy that they’ve inherited.

** Conclusion: **

And that about does it for what if the Dragonborn was in Smash! Out of all of the movesets I have created thus far, this one in particular has to have been the hardest one. But on the same token, it was probably the most fun I’ve had writing one as well. “Skyrim” is one of my favourite games of all time, so creating a moveset for their signature hero was all the more rewarding to do. And while it is unlikely that we’ll ever see the Dragonborn actually make their way into Smash, I am still glad to have had this much fun thinking of what could happen if they ever did make it in.

Regardless, I hope you all enjoyed reading this. Whatever your thoughts are, please let me know with a review and be sure to check out “Gems In Smash”; a series where I create movesets for Steven Universe characters. Also be sure to check out “The Spirit Howls”, a Legend Of Korra fanfiction that I’ve been working on for a while. I'm sorry for the delay of my newest chapter, I just need to iron out the details and the dialogue. And if you're so inclined, be sure to check out my YouTube channel Media Hood Reviews, where I'm becoming a bit more active after a year of zero videos.

Thanks for reading, and I’ll you guys next time!

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